As a Senior Vice President with Ogilvy & Mather, Amira Barger partners with brands to discover and story-craft their hero’s journey to reach their most important audiences. As a seasoned communications strategist, she brings experience in the public, nonprofit and private sector. After investing 14 years within nonprofits she is equipped in the kind of collaborative leadership necessary to effectively tackle pressing, public issues that impact us all. Amira facilitates a variety of courses at Cal State East Bay and Vanguard University, and is a sought-after speaker on the topics of strategic planning, fundraising, marketing, communications, and volunteerism. 

Kate Byrne is President of Intentional Media, which is dedicated to shaping the impact economy by delivering media that drives movements. A leader in digital media and social impact for over 25 years she has married her interest in technology and its ability to advance publishing and social good. She has held executive positions at such well-known media outlets as Fast Company, BusinessWeek, Inc., The Tides Foundation, and Watermark. Kate serves as President of the Board for the UN National Committee for Women SF Chapter, on the Board of C-Change Media, Concord Consortium, and Bambini Yoga. She is a Commissioner on the Marin Commission for Women and Girls. A 4th generation Californian, she loves yoga, dance, travel and movies. She lives in San Rafael, has two amazing daughters and a wonderful husband (plus her beloved dog and cat). Kate graduated from Stanford with a B.A. in psychology.

Johanna Calabria is a consultant helping law firms launch and improve their performance.  She received a B.A. in Government from Cornell University and a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, then spent several years as a litigator at large New York and Bay Area law firms before starting her own firm and eventually, helping launch Durie Tangri, an intellectual property litigation boutique that has become a top tier law firm in the country. Born in Venezuela, Johanna is a native Spanish speaker and combines this ability with her legal skills to help immigrants on a pro bono basis seeking asylum into the United States.

With more than a decade of experience in city government, public policy as well as strategic and crisis communications management, Connie Chan has demonstrated her creativity to problem-solve and my ability to produce successful results. In addition, her understanding of Asian/API American communities and expertise in Asian language media outreach, gives her the edge to bringing cultural and language competency to her teams. Connie’s hands-on experience of working with diverse community groups, stakeholders, and media outlets, consistently builds noteworthy momentum for the people and projects that she works with.

Aliya Chisti was born and raised in San Francisco, she attended Sunnyside Elementary, Aptos Middle, and Lowell High School. She graduated from UC Davis in 2010 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Nutrition Science and minor in Political Science. She has experience as a substitute teacher for the San Francisco Unified School District and has also taught at Aim High Summer School Program. Her personal experiences in education fueled her to pursue a Master’s in Education Policy from Teachers College Columbia University. While on the east coast, she interned for Congresswoman Yvette Clarke and for Senator Patty Murray. After graduating from Columbia University, she pursued a Fulbright Scholarship in Macedonia where she taught English and also researched Eastern Europe’s higher education system. Most recently, she was a Legislative Aide to Former Board President Malia Cohen. She is currently the Senior Analyst for the Free City program for San Francisco City & County: Department of Children, Youth & Their Families (DCYF).

As Interim Deputy Director of Operations and Growth, Sihle Dinani leads Operations strategy for Movement Strategy Center, a funder intermediary and fiscal sponsor incubating social justice organizations nationwide. Sihle joins the Coro Women in Leadership Cohort with over 20 years of finance and operations experience. She has previously worked with the YMCA of San Diego County, Sweatshop Watch, and the Garment Worker Center, honing skills in accounting, fundraising and public education. A mother, consummate volunteer and novice gardener, Sihle is dedicated to efficiency and accountability within social justice organizations.Outside of work, Sihle has volunteered with community based grassroots organizations like Urban Tilth, Duniya Dance and Drum Company, and Black Women for Wellness.

Jess Eagle is a communications professional with a passion for helping survivors of sexual violence tell their stories in a way that makes them feel heard and empowered, especially after facing disbelief. As Strategic Communications Manager at Equal Rights Advocates, she uses her journalism and community organizing background to fight for gender justice in schools and workplaces. She loves her local yoga community in Oakland, and is a dorky fangirl of documentaries about outer space.

Andrea Gaffney is an award-winning urban designer with more than twenty years of professional experience in architecture, landscape architecture and city & regional planning. She thrives at the confluence of these disciplines, and it is through this thick approach to the built environment that she enjoys collaborating with others through research, practice, and education. She joined the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission in 2016 to facilitate the expansion and improvement of shoreline public access around the Bay.

As Senior Program Officer at the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation, Rebecca Goldberg’s work focuses on character development with national youth development organizations. Rebecca serves on the Steering Committee of Grantmakers for Thriving Youth and chairs its Out-of-School Time Work Group. Outside of work, she serves as Board Chair of Playworks Northern California. Rebecca previously worked in youth development and workforce development. At the California School-Age Consortium, a statewide organization that supports after-school programs with training and leadership development, Rebecca led workforce initiatives to build the pipeline and preparation for after-school staff. At a community-based organization in Los Angeles, she led career & workforce development initiatives spearheading new programs, employer engagement, and career pathways into energy/pharmaceuticals, entertainment, and teaching. She led statewide scaling of the teacher pathway.

Hanni Hanson is a senior program officer at the Compton Foundation, a private family foundation in San Francisco, where she facilitates grant making to nonprofits working in the fields of climate change, peace and security, reproductive justice, and democracy. Hanni also helped to manage the Foundation’s $5 million grant making initiative to advance women’s leadership and gender justice in US foreign policy and national security. Before joining the Foundation, she worked for an Oakland-based organization running youth leadership development programs. Hanni has a BA from Stanford University, where her studies focused on religion as a force in social movements.

Cara Houser is a real estate development professional with 15+ years of experience working in San Francisco and Berkeley. Project specialties include: mixed-use, mixed-income, multifamily housing, urban infill, student housing, and transit oriented developments. She loves the challenge of bringing diverse interests together to create a uniquely valuable contribution to the community. Now more than ever we need to bring creative solutions to the market to help address our severe housing shortage and the many societal inequities that flow from that. Cara uses her experience working on all phases of many kinds of projects with people with varying perspectives and stories in order to create common ground and forward momentum.

Rozeena Jhinnu is currently a Human Services Analyst with the Collaborative Communities Outcomes (CCO) Branch, in San Mateo County, in which she supports the Children’s Fund and STEM programs. Prior to joining CCO, she worked in the Early Care & Education sector with the San Francisco Office of Early Care & Education (OECE) and Alameda County Early Care & Education program. At OECE, she was the Senior Quality & Workforce Analyst in which she coordinated and managed the programmatic and policy aspects of quality and workforce projects with community partners. In Alameda County, Rozeena’s primary responsibilities included data collection, research, analysis, and technical assistance. Rozeena holds a BA in Political Science from UC Davis and a MA in Education Policy from Columbia University. In her free time, Rozeena enjoys hiking with her dogs, trying new restaurants, and traveling.

Dana Kleinhesselink is the Director of Development & Communications at The Unity Council. An Oregonian at heart, Dana has lived on the Oakland/Berkeley border since 2012. Dana loves learning, being a connector, and sharing knowledge with others. Her career has been as varied as her interests, from house painting, to event planning, to leading a wilderness trail crew, to helping lead reproductive justice policy advocacy campaigns. Bilingual in English & Spanish, Dana has a B.A. in Rhetoric & Media Studies from Willamette University. She was a student of the School for International Training in Oaxaca, Mexico, where she studied Grassroots Development & Social Change.

Amber Lamason is the Associate Director of Neighborhood and Economic Development at East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC) where she directs social services, community organizing and youth programs serving more than 5,000 low income individuals annually. Amber has worked supporting communities and youth in various roles since 2002. Amber co-founded San Jose Bike Party, a monthly social bike ride whose mission is to build community through cycling. San Jose Bike Party is now a nonprofit whose model is mimicked across dozens of cities internationally. Amber has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of California, San Diego and a Master of Public Administration from the University of San Francisco, where she graduated with honors.

Stacey Lewis is the Vice President of Development at Aim High, a nonprofit that provides thousands of low-income California students with a free summer education program. She previously served on the development team at BUILD, a national youth entrepreneurship organization. Prior to fundraising, she spent a decade working as a reporter for newspapers in Indiana, Iowa, Washington and California. She lives in San Francisco’s Bernal Heights with her husband, 5-year-old son and their dog. She grew up in Cleveland, Ohio and holds a B.A. in journalism from Indiana University.

Stacy Maldonado is a Senior Events Manager at Singularity University (SU). She also co-leads a global initiative that advocates for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) by creating opportunities that connect, uplift, enable and amplify the work and voices of those who are underrepresented in the SU community. Stacy’s goal is to bring awareness to the intersectionality between DEI, impact & innovation across SU’s global grand challenges & exponential technologies. Previous to Singularity University, Stacy managed Casa Joaquin, a multi-ethnic residential leadership program for UC Berkeley students of color, as well as supported the HOPE Leadership Institute, a statewide leadership program for women who aspire to run for office in California. Stacy moved to the Bay Area from Los Angeles to attend UC Berkeley, where she earned a degree in American Studies with an emphasis on Consumer Society & Globalism.

Bambi Marien is half Peruvian and half Hungarian and was raised in a multicultural home. She is a fairly new mother and finds the balance of work and family an interesting challenge. She sits on the executive board of the Contra Costa County Labor Council and look forward to new connections that she can help or pair up with to work together on helping communities and workplaces to be better and stronger. She loves helping others, and feels that her job is more of a lifestyle.

Anne McCarthy is a senior product marketing manager at Dropbox. In this role she leads go-to-market planning and execution to drive awareness and adoption of new products. She also works on content development for executive presentations. Previously, Anne worked at Splunk and Burson-Marsteller. She has been an active member of women in technology initiatives, designing programming that drives growth for women in the workplace. She has presented at Grace Hopper Celebration. Anne enjoys serving as a mentor for a 14-year-old girl through Braid Mission, an organization that provides team-based mentoring for foster youth. Anne also enjoys exploring the US national parks, rich discussions with her book club and cheering on the New England Patriots.

Catherine D. Norbeck supports leadership and organization efficacy in her role as Director, HR at Prologis. Previously she served as Director, Learning & Development where she drove the organizational learning strategy, with a focus on management and leadership. Before joining Prologis, she led learning programs for students and teachers in public and social sectors. Catherine received her Bachelor’s degree in Modern Languages and Literature from Kenyon College (Spanish and Mandarin Chinese) and her Masters degree in Public Administration from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies with a concentration in Leadership and Analytics. She also has a Certificate in International Trade and a Certificate in Teaching English as a Foreign Language.

Jessica Pearson is the Executive Officer for the Delta Stewardship Council, a state agency established in 2009. Most Californians rely in whole or in part on the Delta – an estuary where the state’s two largest rivers meet – for their water, or for food or ecosystem services provided by the Delta. The Council is charged with developing a single blueprint to achieve a more reliable water supply and a healthy Delta ecosystem while protecting the Delta as a place where people work, live, and recreate. Jessica’s career in public service started as a Capital Fellow at the California Natural Resources Agency, and she later served the Director of the Department of Water Resources as an advisor. She has degrees from UC San Diego and UC Davis, and lives behind levees and amid trees in Sacramento with her husband, 2 young children, and several backyard chickens.

Amardeep “Dee” Prasad is the Director of Partnership Programs at the San Francisco Office of Civic Innovation. She leads the Civic Bridge (Pro bono volunteering)and Startup in Residence (STIR) (Technology prototyping) partnership programs that bring public and private teams together to solve civic challenges. She joined the team as the STIR program manager, leading the San Francisco and Regional STIR program. In 2017, she helped launch the national expansion STIR, bringing it to 12 cities across the nation and serves as an advisor the national STIR program. Before joining the Office of Civic Innovation, Dee was an early staff member with the startup non-profit Fuse Corps, helping to launch and scale their nationally recognized civic fellowship program. She holds a Master’s in Public Administration from Notre Dame de Namur University and is an Alumni of Fresno State’s American Humanics Leadership Program.

Ashley Rodick is a senior program offer at the Koret Foundation where she manages K-12 education and higher education grant making. Ashley’s social sector experience spans work with government agencies, community-based organizations, and philanthropic institutions. She has championed several causes, including education and arts, care for the elderly and disabled, technology and transparency in government, programs to address childhood obesity, healthcare for the homeless, and support for at-risk youth.Ashley received her Masters of Social Welfare from UC Berkeley, with a concentration in nonprofit management and planning.She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Stanford University.An avid runner, Ashley serves as chair of the Pamakid Runners Charity Committee, which provides grants to local organizations that promote community health and fitness. She is also involved with the Full Circle Fund, which supports innovative nonprofits through engaged philanthropy, while empowering the next generation of philanthropists.

Chagan Sanathu currently works to develop personal and professional leadership for 40 UC Berkeley undergraduate students through a residential leadership program, Casa Joaquin Murrieta, a program run by the Greenlining Institute’s Leadership Academy.  Over the years, she has personally trained, mentored and coached 760 young people ranging from ages 16 to 25 through her work with various youth leadership programs. Sanathu graduated in 2012 from Goshen College with a degree in business and public relations. During her time as an undergraduate, she interned at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities where she researched the effects of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and the Earned Income Tax Credit for low-income communities, with an emphasis on women who have survived domestic violence. Sanathu is a former board member for the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum-DC Chapter, focusing on fundraising to support the chapter. 

Kandis Smith began working as the Assistant Federal Security Director for Mission Support (AFSD-MS) at Metropolitan Oakland International Airport (OAK) in October, 2015, for the Transportation Security Administration.  In her position, Smith provides leadership and direction to multiple program managers including but not limited to, Human Resources, Program Analysts, Financial Specialist, Payroll Team, Training Department, Scheduling Officer, Executive Assistants, Program Assistants, and Administrative Assistants. Ms. Smith began her career with the Transportation Security Administration in September 29, 2002, as a Supervisory Transportation Security Officer, at the initial roll-out of the TSA screening operation at OAK. Prior to TSA, her background was in management and entrepreneurism.

Linh Tran serves as an Auditor in the Procurement Division at NASA Ames Research Center.  She began her 13-year-career with the Federal Government with the Department of Defense, then Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General, and now NASA.  In her current role, she serves as an advisor to the Procurement Officer on Source Evaluation Boards, committees and panels. Throughout her career, the one common mission has always been serving the taxpayers and protecting the taxpayers’ money.

Tina Wang is currently the Director of Lab Operations at Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. She is a biologist by training, but her career path has taken her out of the lab and into program management. Tina provides leadership and oversight to manage the short and long term strategic planning and organization of all technical aspects of laboratories for all research divisions and programs. She oversees Laboratory Operations services including monitoring of lab performance, documentation and improvement in processes, stakeholder satisfaction, and identifying opportunities for gains in efficiency and effectiveness.

Krystalyn Wells is a Bay Area native currently working as an Embedded Flight Software Engineer at Lockheed Martin Space delivering real-time software solutions that seamlessly integrate multiple hardware components and interfaces for space missions. Krystalyn is driven by her intellectual curiosity to continue learning and expanding beyond her comfort zone. Her most recent endeavors are taking on a Cost Account Manager role at work and volunteering on her son’s preschool co-op board, Little Hands in Belmont, as the Events Co-Chair

Elaine Yee has been working in the affordable housing project management for over a decade in California. She holds a Master of Planning degree from the University of Southern California, specializing in social and community development. Her experience ranging from urban planning, community organizing and real estate development.  In addition, she also specializes in event coordination in weddings and nonprofit events.